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Christmas in July
I stitched this needlepoint Nativity scene about ten years ago and it's a classic. At the time I stitched it, these were all the canvases available - Mary, Joseph, Baby Jesus, Wise Men, Shepherd, and an Angel. Now there are several animals available as well as another angel and shepherd. Eventually I will end up adding them to my scene - just need to get them into the famous "Stitching Rotation". The handpainted canvases come with a Stitch Guide and for the most part I followed them, using the suggested threads and different stitches. They were some of my first forays into doing different stitches on 18ct needlepoint canvas. I guess you know I loved doing them and have just kept going with my "needlepoint career"!
As with a lot of "large" projects this one has special memories for me - I did a lot of the small pieces while I was traveling - I went to the Grand Caymans one summer and the Bahamas the next and got to enjoy sweating and stitching "Christmas in July". I finished up the large background scene while recovering from surgery after a broken ankle the next summer - traveling with them was much more fun! I remember forcing myself to do the "boring part" of the sky so we would be able to display it at our Open House in August of 2000 - we'll be displaying it again this year for fun!
If you come to the Open House this year (Aug 6-7), you'll be able to see how well it has held up over time. Children love to play with the assorted "Characters" and we sometimes find them in interesting positions after we've had young visitors. It's always great fun.
For whatever reason, we've sold a lot of the canvases lately and gotten requests about the frame for the backdrop. The frame has been unavailable for a long time but I recently asked a friend who's great with woodworking if he could replicate it. The frames he brought me are even nicer than the one my piece is in. If you are one of the many people who have purchased this nativity over the years and would like to get a frame, they are available again for $45.00 - get them while I have them!
The canvases are all available as well - just let us know if you are interested in any of them. You can get them one piece at a time, all at once, or a few at a time. If you have a lot of stash threads, you can use some up or we'll be happy to kit them for you. This is one of my favorite pieces I've ever stitched and I'm so happy to have it to enjoy for the rest of my life. It's a fabulous way to help decorate for the Season.
